Why Connatserville you ask. We live in a place that was once all owned by the Connatser family and they, as our neighbors, still own the vast majority of the land, so Connatserville.
For many years, I’ve wanted to give Waygu beef a try but rather than just try it, you know, I just had to do a taste test.
So I invited our beef raising (and eating)
Connatser neighbors down for a meal which was to be strip steaks all seasoned
with just salt and pepper and cooked the same on my grill (4 minutes per
side). Three of the steaks were bought from
Snake River Farms – a Waygu ($55), a prime ($39), and a choice ($20) - and a fourth came from our
local Blue Stem Hollow Market ($13 -their own beef).
Here they are – toothpicks for identification:
They had all been frozen and thawed then warmed for an hour at room temperature. The American Waygu on the left wasn't as heavily marbled as the pics of Japanese Waygu that I've seen.
I got so busy serving them that I forgot the finished pics but they looked like grilled steaks. To serve, I sliced each steak and passed them around one at a time so we could keep them organized on our plates. We sided it with a baked potato and delicious salad from neighbor Pat.
The Verdict:
I don't think anyone noticed much of a difference in the flavor of the four steaks but the tenderness was obvious and in the order I expected - Waygu, Prime, Choice, local - but most thought the prime and the Waygu were very close and wouldn't pay the additional $16 for the Waygu. There was a noticeable difference between the prime and choice and again between the choice and local. We don't eat a lot of steak but for the future, I believe I'll look for prime and Bev will stick with her favorite tenderloin where grade doesn't matter as much.
Hamburgers On The Gas Grill Griddle
As you likely know, I like to watch Diners, Drive-ins, and
Dives and the places Guy visits do a lot of cooking on a flattop (griddle) so
it inspired to buy one and give it a try.
I bought one along with the needed utensils in July 2022 and they have
been sitting in the box since then but lately I’ve become more convinced that a
flat top is a better way to cook most food (especially meat) than a plain grill,
especially for crust formation.
Before the cook, I looked at You Tube videos on how to clean the griddle and how to install it in the grill with the main tip for getting it hot enough being to remove the flavorizer bars from the grill – about 350F is the desired surface temperature. The gap on the right is where the smoker box normally resides.
The one I bought is called a “Little Griddle" and it covers three of my four grill burners and I chose hamburgers for its low-risk maiden voyage.
I cooked the burgers for three minutes with the grill lid open then flipped, added cheese, closed the lid, and cooked for two more minutes.
I forgot the finish cooked pics but this is Bev’s built the
normal way and my open faced one dressed like a hot dog with chili, mustard,
and onion.
The Verdict:
The burgers cooked fast and turned out very well but I’ll need a few cooks on it to figure out the temps, then after eating, I cleaned the griddle per the you tube directions – the disadvantage of using a griddle.
After this first cook, I realized that I needed to know the
griddle surface temperature so I invested $20 in an Etekcity Infrared Thermometer
which will get me within a couple of degrees.
New Windshield
During a trip to Pensacola, FL last May, a rock hit our
windshield and I had the damage repaired at the local Safelight shop. Then the car sat out while we were in Italy
and when we got home we were met with this.
Since the crack included the previous repair, my insurance agent called it a failed repair and reopened the previous claim which resulted in a new windshield at no cost to me - the first ever new windshield for me.
Photos can be slightly enlarged
by clicking on them and the blue words are links.
Have a
great day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.
Larry
5/31/25 meal date
Very interesting steak test, with your results I believe I would also go for the prime.
ReplyDeleteIf I've said it once, I've said it 500 times, the best burgers come from a flat top. Thanks for sharing the beef test. And speaking of burgers, the best burger I've ever had was billed as a Waygu beef burger. I always wondered if it really was due to the Waygu.
ReplyDeleteYou can get flattop-like results for burgers on a grill, but you have to have a really high heat grill to get any caramelization. A searing grill for gas or careful charcoal management is a key. If you like the smash burger as your standard, just cook on a griddle or skillet. That's how Smashburger does it and how Steak and Shake has done it for decades.
ReplyDeleteWe had wagyu in Japan and it was AMAZING–the best beef I've ever had. My sister loves her flat top griddle and uses it all the time. Your burgers look tasty!
ReplyDelete